HAWAI‘I COVID-19 JOINT INFORMATION CENTER DAILY NEWS DIGEST

News Release from Department of Health, April 4, 2020

Fourth Death is East O‘ahu Adult

An East O‘ahu adult male, over 65-years-old, is the 4th person to die from COVID-19. The individual passed this morning, and based on preliminary information, had traveled and had been hospitalized. The Department of Health offers its deep condolences to the family and friends of the individual at this difficult and sad time. 

Two minors are among the 32 new cases of COVID-19 being reported today. The majority of cases reported since tracking began on Feb. 28 are related to travel (12 today and 184 to date). Community spread is identified in one (1) new case today and in twenty (20) cases to-date. The risk factor in 19 cases today and 147 of the total cases remains unknown. There are now a total of 351 presumptive or confirmed cases in the state.

LABORATORY TESTING DATA

12,962  Total Number of Individuals Tested by Clinical and State Laboratories

349   Positive

12,604  Negative

Nine (9) test results were inconclusive

HAWAI‘I COVID-19 COUNTS AS OF 12 NOON, APRIL 4, 2020

*Includes the first positive case on Molokai. 

*“Pending investigation” refers to positive cases that have an unknown county of diagnosis at the time of this report. As more information becomes available for these cases, they are assigned to the proper County of Diagnosis. A negative number indicates the number of previously unknown cases that have now been assigned to a county.

Hawai‘i Tourism Authority:

Airline Arrivals Up Slightly

Yesterday, 628 people arrived in Hawai‘i including 94 visitors and 239 residents. That’s up slightly from Thursday. The state’s 14-day mandatory self-quarantine started last week for all passengers arriving in Hawai‘i from out of state and was expanded to include interisland travelers. This table shows the number of people who arrived by air from out of state yesterday and does not include interisland travel. LINK

Department of Defense:

Brig. Gen Moses Kaoiwi Jr. Named Joint Task Force Commander

Maj. Gen. Kenneth S. Hara has named Brig. Gen. Moses Kaoiwi Jr. as the Hawai‘i National Guard (HING) Joint Task Force (JTF) Commander. The JTF was last activated in 2018 during the Kīlauea lava flow and two tropical storms. Some of the support that the HING has been providing includes: assistance to the Hawai‘i Emergency Management Agency in planning and Emergency Operations Center activities; support to the State of Hawai‘i Joint Information Center to help communicate accurate health and safety information to people. Additionally, the HING is supporting the Hawai‘i Healthcare Emergency Management with warehouse support for receiving, conducting inventories, and repackaging medical equipment, supplies and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) from the National Stockpile. Future support will include airport medical screening, law enforcement support, county emergency management support, healthcare support and more.

Department of the Attorney General:

AG Asks VA to Suspend Deadlines and Collections for Veterans

Attorney General Clare E. Connors has joined 22 other attorneys general to urge the U.S. Dept. of Veteran Affairs to suspend benefits claims deadlines and debt collection activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the current situation, unemployment has skyrocketed, and veterans are losing their jobs, making it difficult for them to make debt payments. In a letter to the VA, the coalition of AGs argues that the department’s continued enforcement of deadlines and collections is putting veterans in financial danger and increasing their risk of losing essential VA benefits that they rely on for basic necessities like food and housing.  Letter-to-VA

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers:

USACE Continues Evaluation of Facilities for Alternate Care

The Honolulu District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers continues initial planning and site assessments of facilities across the state for potential use as alternate care facilities (ACFs). Locations are chosen by the state and so far the USACE District and engineering assessment team has looked at sites on O‘ahu, Maui and Hawai‘i Island. This week they evaluated locations in Hilo and Kailua-Kona. Lt. Col. Kathryn Sanborn, Honolulu District Commander explained, “The analysis provides essential information to the state so they can make informed decisions about next steps for the health and wellness of the community. Lt. Col. Sanborn is expected to give an update on the conversion of facilities to ACFs at the governor’s daily news briefing on Monday.  LINK

Hawai‘i State House of Representatives:

Select Committee on COVID-19 Schedules Third Informational Briefing

The House Select Committee on COVID-19 Economic and Financial Preparedness has scheduled its third informational briefing on the economic impacts of the crisis on Hawai‘i on Monday, April 6, beginning at 10 a.m. To comply with physical distancing restrictions to prevent the spread of coronavirus, the briefing is not open to the public and no public testimony will be accepted. The hearing will be available statewide on community television: ‘Olelo, Nā Leo TV,

Akakū and Hō‘ike Community Television. Livestreaming is available at:

LINK 1 or LINK 2

For more information about the committee and to see related documents go to LINK